Systems and methods for remote mouse pointer management

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided that may employ remote system mouse pointer position feedback from video/graphics circuitry (e.g., video adapter hardware such as graphics card, video card, etc.) of a remote information handling system to manage a remote mouse pointer based on local mouse position input received from a user interface of local information handling system that is communicatively coupled to the remote information handling system across a wired or wireless network, e.g., to synchronize a remote mouse pointer with a local mouse pointer that is manipulated by a local user of a local information handling system or to implement a single cursor mode for the remote mouse pointer.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A system of multiple information handling systems, comprising:
 at least one first information handling system configured to operate as a remote host system that comprises:
 at least one first processing device configured to execute a host operating system (OS), 
 a video adapter (VGA) that is coupled to the first processing device of the remote host system to receive information from the first processing device of the remote host system and to provide remote system frame buffer information and additional information that is different from the remote system frame buffer information in an unused section of a VGA frame buffer memory, and 
 at least one second processing device embedded within the remote host system, the second processing device of the remote host system being coupled to the VGA to receive both the remote system frame buffer information and the additional information from the VGA in the unused section of the VGA frame buffer memory; and 
 
 at least one second information handling system coupled to the first information handling system across a network, the second information handling system configured to operate as a local client system; 
 where the second processing device of the remote host system is configured to provide information based on the additional information across the network to the local client system. 
 
     
     
       2. The system of  claim 1 , where the additional information is based on information received from the first processing device of the remote host system; and where the local client system is coupled to the remote host system across the network such that the second processing device of the remote host system is coupled between the local client system and the first processing device and is also coupled between the local client system and the VGA. 
     
     
       3. The system of  claim 1 , where the first processing device of the remote host system comprises a central processing unit (CPU) configured to execute the host operating system (OS); where the VGA comprises a VGA card; and where the second processing device of the remote host system comprises a remote access controller configured to provide updated remote system frame buffer information including information based on the additional information across the network to the local client system coupled to the remote host system. 
     
     
       4. The system of  claim 1 , where the second processing device of the remote host system is configured to:
 receive the additional information from the VGA in the unused section of the VGA frame buffer memory; and 
 provide feedback to the first processing device of the remote host system or provide additional information to the local processing device based on the additional information from the VGA in the remote host system. 
 
     
     
       5. The system of  claim 1 , where the first processing device of the remote host system is further configured to determine updated absolute X/Y position of a remote system mouse pointer and provide this additional information to the VGA; where the VGA is configured to provide the additional information based on the updated absolute X/Y position of a remote system mouse pointer to the second processing device; where the second processing device is configured to provide the additional information to a local processing device across a network to a local client system coupled to the remote host system; and where the local processing device is configured to display an image of the updated remote system mouse pointer position representing the updated absolute X/Y position of the remote system mouse pointer on a local display device of a local user interface. 
     
     
       6. A method of operating multiple information handling systems, comprising:
 providing at least one first information handling system as a remote host system comprising:
 at least one first processing device, 
 a video adapter (VGA) that is coupled to the first processing device, and 
 at least one second processing device embedded within the remote host system that is coupled to the VGA to receive both remote system frame buffer information and additional information that is different from the remote system frame buffer information from the VGA in the unused section of the VGA frame buffer memory that is based on information received from the first processing device of the remote host system; and 
 
 using the first processing device of the remote host system to execute a host operating system (OS); 
 using the VGA of the remote host system to provide the remote system frame buffer information and the additional information in the unused section of the VGA frame buffer memory to the second processing device of the remote host system; and 
 using the second processing device to provide information based on the additional information across a network to the local processing device of a second information handling system operating as a local client system. 
 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 6 , where the additional information is based on information received from the first processing device of the remote host system. 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 6 , where the first processing device of the remote host system comprises a central processing unit (CPU); where the VGA comprises a VGA card; where the second processing device comprises a remote access controller; and where the method further comprises:
 using the first processing device to execute the host operating system (OS); and 
 using the second processing device to provide updated remote system frame buffer information including information based on the additional information across the network to the local client system coupled to the remote host system. 
 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 6 , further comprising using the first processing device of the remote host system to determine updated absolute X/Y position of a remote system mouse pointer and provide this additional information to the VGA; where the VGA is configured to provide the additional information based on the updated absolute X/Y position of a remote system mouse pointer to the second processing device; where the second processing device is configured to provide the additional information to a local processing device across a network to a local client system coupled to the remote host system; and where the local processing device is configured to an image of the updated remote system mouse pointer position representing the updated absolute X/Y position of the remote system mouse pointer on a local display device of a local user interface. 
     
     
       10. An information handling system, comprising:
 at least one first processing device configured to execute a host operating system (OS); 
 a video adapter (VGA) that is coupled to the first processing device to provide system frame buffer information and additional information that is different from the system frame buffer information in the unused section of a VGA frame buffer memory; and 
 at least one second processing device embedded within the information handling system, the second processing device being coupled to the VGA to receive both the system frame buffer information and the additional information from the VGA in the unused section of the VGA frame buffer memory. 
 
     
     
       11. The system of  claim 10 , where the additional information is based on information received from the first processing device of the information handling system. 
     
     
       12. The system of  claim 11 , where the second processing device of the information handling system is configured to:
 receive the additional information from the VGA in the unused section of the VGA frame buffer memory; and 
 at least one of:
 provide feedback to the first processing device of the information handling system, or 
 provide information based on the additional information from the VGA to a local processing device of a local client system coupled to the information handling system across a network. 
 
 
     
     
       13. The system of  claim 10 , where the first processing device comprises an in-band host processing device; and where the second processing device comprises an out-of-band processing device. 
     
     
       14. The system of  claim 10 , where the first processing device comprises a central processing unit (CPU) configured to execute the host operating system (OS); where the VGA comprises a VGA card; and where the second processing device of the remote host system comprises a remote access controller configured to provide updated remote system frame buffer information including information based on the additional information across a network to a local client system coupled to the information handling system. 
     
     
       15. A method of operating an information handling system, comprising:
 using at least one first processing device of the information handling system to execute a host operating system (OS); 
 using a video adapter (VGA) of the information handling system that is coupled to the first processing device to provide system frame buffer information and additional information that is different from the system frame buffer information in the unused section of a VGA frame buffer memory to at least one second processing device embedded within the information handling system; 
 where the second processing device is coupled to the VGA to receive both the system frame buffer information and the additional information from the VGA in the unused section of the VGA frame buffer memory. 
 
     
     
       16. The method of  claim 15 , where the additional information is based on information received from the first processing device of the information handling system. 
     
     
       17. The method of  claim 16 , further comprising using the second processing device of the information handling system to:
 receive the additional information from the VGA in the unused section of the VGA frame buffer memory; and 
 at least one of:
 provide feedback to the first processing device of the information handling system, or 
 provide information based on the additional information from the VGA to a local processing device of a local client system coupled to the information handling system across a network. 
 
 
     
     
       18. The method of  claim 15 , where the additional information is based on information received from the first processing device of the remote host system. 
     
     
       19. The method of  claim 15 , where the information handling system comprises a remote host system; where the first processing device of the remote host system comprises a central processing unit (CPU) configured to execute the host OS, where the VGA comprises a VGA card, where the second processing device of the remote host system comprises a remote access controller; and where the method further comprises:
 executing a host operating system (OS) on the CPU; and 
 using the remote access controller to provide updated remote system frame buffer information including information based on the additional information across a network to a local client system coupled to the remote host system. 
 
     
     
       20. The method of  claim 15 , where the second processing device is integrated within a chassis of the first information handling system with the first processing device and the VGA. 
     
     
       21. The system of  claim 1 , where the second processing device is integrated within a chassis of the first information handling system with the first processing device and VGA; and where the second processing device of the remote host system is configured to provide the additional information that is different from the remote system frame buffer information across the network from the first information handling system to the local client system. 
     
     
       22. The method of  claim 6 , where the second processing device is integrated within a chassis of the first information handling system with the first processing device and VGA; and where the method further comprises using the second processing device to provide the additional information that is different from the remote system frame buffer information across the network from the first information handling system to the local processing device of the second information handling system that is operating as a local client system. 
     
     
       23. The system of  claim 10 , where the second processing device is integrated within a chassis of the first information handling system with the first processing device and VGA.